I made it Monday - and recipes!

Well I did take photo's but ran out of time to edit yesterday's post in part due to getting carried away with sorting out sock yarn for "new baby socks" AND ordering something snuggly for a new project for the new baby I mentioned ..
AND poor dh went out for a game of tennis with another group of players for the first time in months (one of his regular team-mates is currently recuperating following operation) and promptly slipped - did the splits - done his back IN (again).  He has a dodgy back anyway and I'm constantly nagging at him suggesting that he adjust his posture in order to nag at him to help him better manage his pain; he spent the entire night in agony and clearly didn't remain in bed the whole night & this morning when I got up early and showered thinking I'd be set to take him to the GP - he's gone! to work. one presumes.
The trouble with dh (and most men?) is that they shriek about a minor cold and expect hot toddies and be let off washing-up duties but when they ARE "ill" or have an accident, they steadfastly refuse to accept its happening and carry on regardless.  He's clearly raided the cupboard looking for pain-killers and the problem with THAT is that as he never takes them even when under instruction by a Dr to, he's got no idea what to take - when to take them - and more importantly any "dangers" OF taking them.
My box labeled in pen "VERY VERY strong tablets ONLY for me for when my PAINFUL frozen shoulder becomes SO unbearable without taking these I'm going to SHOVE you out of your own WINDOW if you try and stop me" is left ominously EMPTY on the kitchen counter.
hmm. this means EITHER he's high as a kite and like as not wouldn't notice if HE fell out of a window OR I'd kept the box, empty, as a momento and reminder of this terrible painful experience ..
Either way, dh is NOT here and neither is the car .. which must mean he's gone to work .. and THATS another thing.
(sorry. its turned into a rant.  I'm like this.  End up going off on one. skip to the pics if you prefer, I won't mind!)
Like a lot of men (of his age) he WON'T take time off work.  Not even when "ill" - in 27yrs I can honestly say he has rarely taken any time and while ok, he has rarely HAD to take time being as he is generally "lucky" to enjoy excellent health - he wouldn't even IF he really ought.  And I do think that doing the splits and wrenching his back and possibly putting something "out" on the tennis court at his age ought to mean he'd be better off at the GP Surgery seeking advice on "managing" his back and getting his own suitable tablets and resting at home until his back goes away .. ?
And another thing! like as not he'll come home in agony, but insist is ok to go out for his regular snooker night! hows that going to help? bent over the snooker table with a dodgy back? its not, but if I try and say so it will be me "nagging" again (and spoiling his life) .. bah ..
YESTERDAY I MADE:

quiche for dinner

Quiche from Delia smith's book.  The only problem I seem to get is that the pastry is inclined to come away from the container at the blind-baking stage prior to the filling/cooking in parts - unfortunately I forgot to take a photo of the entire quiche and only remembered later on in the evening that I was supposed to have photographed it! and this is the last bit left in the fridge for today's salad/lunch and thus is the bit with the missing pastry and slightly dodgily overdone bacon which makes it look like announcing "hurrah! its QUICHE for dinner!" is not a good idea if am expecting a positive response back of "hurrah!" BUT to be fair, we ate the better parts and this left over is somewhat a treat for anyone who might be wishing they'd had more.
(to be fair, its not often that anyone ever does wish they'd had "more" but there are some meals I cook which are more popular than others; and there are SOME in my family who respond rather less well than the rest on some things I fling their way.  We had a dodgy moment at the weekend when after some couple of weeks of "busyness" meant I did a few not especially healthy veg filled meals in a row and THEN presented no.2.son with a roast dinner including both broccoli AND peas with his carrots he promptly proceeded to nip at the edges with his teeth in manner of presented with poison and HEAVED into his plate .. this is VERY offputting to everyone including our son and I did think we'd got over this stage and that I'd learned my lesson following one memorable occasion when he heaved the entire dinner of shepherds pie back onto his plate after a mouthful of broccoli.  but WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO DO?  what I do do, is that I find the smallest most complete sprig and ask that he nibble around the edges a bit to show willing and then we're both happy that a/ I have tried (my best) and b/ he has tried (his best).  QUICHE is generally popular with no.2.son and as its served with chips and baked beans for him and thus let off the horrid broccoli gets eaten and enjoyed - we eat quiche around once a month and I always do the same version and I always get the same resulting falling away bit but otherwise my pastry is improved & all the better from the practice!).

dough mixture

to be fair, I tend to use my food processor for most baking and in particular for pastry and dough for biscuits etc largely because its quicker and easier & any disadvantage in making it this method vs. the "proper" by hand rolling kneading and encouraging adding stuff like eggs and water drip by drip  is knocked out by the cooking anyway!  I can't blame the oven anymore on account of having a new super-duper one I have to instead accept that I'm not a natural "cook".
Looking through my books to find something I could make yesterday FOR the make it monday challenge suiting the ingredients I had in the kitchen made me try out two NEW recipes! for biscuity thingies that apparently require very little in the way of ingredients, making up of! baking therein! (and possibly "taste" too?).
and thus I baked:

melting moments cooling before being filled

THESE! "melting moments" or yo-yo's.
the ingredients and method in my book is very similar to this except mine were "filled" and paired with a butter/icing sugar with vanilla extract mixture which unfortunately I made slightly too runny and they have to sit in the fridge to harden and then get eaten rather quickly before the filling runs and the biscuit melts - one of my son's took rather too long pondering over whether it was SAFE to try and nervously took a small bite whereupon the filling ran down his throat and the biscuit melted sticking his teeth preventing him from swallowing giving him an unpleasant experience with a sneezing nose and several tissues ..
my other son on the other hand declared them yummy! bite sized HE bravely put the lot in his mouth in one go and just waited for the meltingness to process around his teeth before swallowing it with the filling no doubt helping if only a little ..

melting moments & almond shortbread drops

INSPIRED by the fact that apparently with the right book to hand one can bake anything out of nothing I decided to do a batch of almond shortbread drops (but without the almonds).  I did! however! have a bottle of almond extract! and can confirm that this really DOES enhance the flavour of the nothing-much-in-way-of-taste-ingredients but to be fair you need to LIKE almond-flavour)
The link is quite similar but mine is even more basic using only butter, flour, rice four and icing sugar but adding the almond extract omitting the actual almond works quite well.
As my son said, at least they are small enough to pop into mouth in one go AND can be swallowed quickly and they don't hang out melting around your teeth ..

I'm glad I gave it a go and tried something new - perhaps next Monday I will be better organised and able to gear up to making something else and blogging again possibly joining in, too!  I've not linked my efforts to the list, instead I'm sort of doing it on the quiet! shhh! ;-)